Contributor: by Brian Sullivan, Public Relations Manager, Addiction Campuses
A Conversation with Dr. Jason Brooks
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. – As we think about the phrase “from willingness to serenity” in the context of addiction, we have to recognize there is a process in getting from point A to point B.
In order to take a first step toward willingness and into a new life, 4 things have to occur.
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- Acceptance. There needs to be a willingness to accept the reality of where we are at – that we are struggling with an addiction and that our life is not everything we had hoped it would be. This is not what we dreamed about becoming.
- Understanding. Willingness is also the ability to understand that change needs to happen and we need to take an intentional next step in order to break the chains of addiction. That next step may be inpatient treatment. It may be getting rid of things from our life that are anchoring us back to the addiction that has held us captive for so long. It may be moving away from painful relationships, friendships, work relationships and even family relationships.
- Belief. The 3rd step in willingness is believing that things can be better. Often times we have a hard time even being able to imagine that there is life outside of addiction – a better life for ourselves. Being able to embrace and even consider this concept can be an entirely new concept for us, but it is a necessary step everyone must recognize.
- Action. The last step in willingness is to take action. It’s not just about understanding change, but it is an intentional next step. We should ask ourselves where do I need to go and what do I need to do now?
Don’t Lose Hope in the Willingness You’ve Created
“Through taking the steps to willingness, serenity begins to take place,” says Dr. Brooks of Addiction Campuses. “It’s not easy. It is a journey. There’ll be hard days.
There’ll be hard days. There will be days when you feel like you’re moving in the right direction. There will be days when you feel like you’ve taken 2 steps forward and 3 steps back.”
Dr. Brooks says it’s during those times that we can’t lose hope in the willingness that we’ve created to make a new life. Serenity for us is fully living in and embracing the concept of a balanced life worth living.
A life that we have designed for our self, dreamed for ourselves and created for ourselves. Through serenity, we can be intentional and deliberate in every moment of our lives.
“For those that go through our Christian program, serenity is often times found for them in Christ,” says Dr. Brooks. “The fullness in who you are and how God created you to be and living that every moment of every day.”
Letting Go of the Negative in Your Life
Dr. Brooks says when you have willingly let go of some pieces of your life such as negative anger that’s holding you back, serenity can be found. Positive, fulfilling relationships, jobs that are aligned with your heart and your mind and your passion, and live a life that is real and authentic for you.
There is serenity in living the fullness of our life in the way that we’ve dreamed and imagined. Willingness is a necessary part of achieving serenity, and the most important catalyst for the two is action. There is a conscious decision that needs to be made, and through that, we find the serenity of knowing that we’ve created a life for ourselves that will be realized.
Action Has to Come for Serenity to Occur
“I think that the first piece of the puzzle is that willingness to say I need to do something different and that recognition that action has to come in order for change to occur,” says Dr. Brooks.
“That willingness to take a step forward. During the course of treatment, it’s a willingness to understand the past, to make amends with the past, forgive yourself and others in the past but then also create a vision for what the future is going to be.”
Dr. Brooks says we need to ask ourselves what we need to be doing differently in order to achieve that vision. Ultimately, coming through treatment and the ongoing relationships we keep with our clients is an outgrowth or a result of making those intentional choices and having a willingness to change.
If you or someone you know is battling addiction, call our hotline at 1.888.614.2251 or log onto www.addictioncampuses.com.
About Addiction Campuses:
Addiction Campuses provides the most comprehensive addiction treatment program in the country by going beyond the standard30-dayy plan and treating persons struggling with addiction mentally and spiritually to break the cycle of repeated visits to treatment. Utilizing our addiction campus environment we have the depth of caring staff, industry experience and clinical proficiency to effectively treat the disease of addiction for life.
Addiction Campuses’ admissions center is trained to assess and place the client into one of the Addiction Campuses treatment centers across the country within a 1 hour time frame. This speed in service delivery and thorough commitment to the client long term allows the person struggling with addiction to get quickly on the road to recovery and create a life that’s worth living.
Community Discussion – Share your thoughts here!
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The opinions and views of our guest contributors are shared to provide a broad perspective of addiction. These are not necessarily the views of Addiction Hope, but an effort to offer discussion of various issues by different concerned individuals.
Last Updated & Reviewed By: Jacquelyn Ekern, MS, LPC on June 10, 2017
Published on AddictionHope.com